The Internet is a world-wide network of computers. The Internet is comprised of thousands of smaller regional networks scattered throughout the world. The World-Wide Web is mostly used on the Internet; however, the web refers to a body of information, while the Internet refers to the physical global computer network.
Information on the World-Wide Web is accessible to people around the world. The information on the web is linked with other information on the web so that information can be easily found. The links on the web are made possible by using HyperText and HyperMedia. HyperText is the same as regular text; however, HyperText allows a user to hyperlink to other documents. Likewise, HyperMedia contains links to graphics, audio, and video files.
In a HyperText system, you simply click on a HyperText word or phrase to connect with another document. In this way, related information is linked together and connections to other documents are made easily.
The web is a mass of interconnected web servers. Web servers are software applications that run on computers connected to the Internet. Web servers manage network resources, such as applications, web sites, etc. For example, a web file server is a computer and storage device dedicated to storing files. Any user on the network can store files on the file server. A web print server is a computer that manages one or more printers. A web network server is a computer that manages network traffic and a web database server is a computer that processes database queries.
A servlet is a standard software approach for extending server functionality without the limitations of common gateway interface (CGI) based or server-specific approaches. A CGI is a set of rules that describe how a web server communicates with another piece of software on the same machine, and how the other piece of software (the CGI program) talks to the web server.
A web browser is a program that interfaces with the user and requests documents from a server as the user asks for them. A user can locate and display web pages by using a web browser.
The standard language the web uses for creating and recognizing HyperText and HyperMedia documents is the HyperText Markup Language (HTML). HTML is a standard that controls how the World Wide Web works. It covers how web pages are formatted and displayed. HTML is related to the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), a widely used document formatting language. SGML is a system for organizing and tagging elements of a document. HTML is one way of defining and interpreting tags according to SGML rules. HTML supports links to other documents, as well as graphics, audio, and video files. This means users can jump from one document to another by simply clicking on hyperlinks.
Web documents are typically written in HTML and are usually named with the suffix ".html". HTML documents are nothing more than standard 7-bit ASCII files with formatting codes that contain information about layout (text styles, document titles, paragraphs, lists) and hyperlinks.
HTML uses Uniform Resource Locators (UTRLs) to represent hyperlinks and links to network services within documents. It is possible to represent nearly any file or service on the Internet with a URL. A URL is the global address for documents and other resources on the web. An example of a URL address is: http:/www.dv2u.com. The first part of the URL (before the two slashes) specifies the method of access, i.e., what protocol to use (FTP, HTTP, etc.). The second part is typically the Internet protocol (IP) address or domain name of the computer where the data or service is located. Further parts may specify the names of files, the port to connect to, or the text to search for in a database.
Most web browsers allow the user to specify a URL and connect to that document or service. When selecting HyperText in an HTML document, the user is actually sending a request to open a URL. In this way, hyperlinks can be made not only to other texts and media, but also to other network services.
HyperText Transmission Protocol (HTTP) is the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web. This computer protocol allows browsers and servers to communicate with each other. All browsers and servers communicate in HTTP in order to send and receive HyperText and HyperMedia documents. For this reason, web servers are often called HTTP servers. HTTP defines how messages are formatted and transmitted. For example, when a user enters a URL, this actually sends an HTTP command to the web server directing it to fetch and transmit the requested web page.
A cookie is a message given to a web browser by a web server. The browser stores the message in a file typically called cookie.txt. The message is then sent back to the server each time the browser requests a page from the server. A typical use of cookies is to identify users and possibly prepare customized web pages for them. When a user enters a web site using cookies, the user may be asked to fill out a form providing information such as the user's name and interests. This information is packaged into a cookie and sent to the user's web browser which stores it for later use. The next time that user goes to the same web site, the user's browser will send the cookie to the web server. The server can use this information to present custom web pages to the user.
The name cookie derives from UNIX objects called magic cookies. These are tokens that are attached to a user or program and change depending on the areas entered by the user or program. Cookies are also sometimes called persistent cookies because they typically stay in the browser for long periods of time.
Advertisers are now targeting the world-wide audience connected to the Internet. Advertisers display ads on web sites in hopes of selling their goods or services. By use of cookies, advertisers can target the ads that a given user sees. This is favorable to advertisers, but not necessarily users. Privacy concerns have discouraged some advertisers from using cookies which identify particular users. What these advertisers desire is a way to target their ads without violating a user's privacy. That is one of the purposes of the present invention.